Traditionally, soft frozen products such as soft (aerated) ice cream are prepared at the point of sale and then dispensed into a suitable receptacle such as an edible wafer cone for consumption. Demands for better food safety and hygiene standards have more recently led food suppliers to move away from the traditional product toward a system in which individual portions are pre-prepared and packed, ready to be dispensed at the point of sale or consumption in a hygienic fashion which allows for the avoidance of cross- contamination between the dispensing equipment and the product.
One such system disclosed in EP 0 674 482B comprises a substantially rigid cup for holding the frozen product, the cup having an aperture in its base through which the product may be dispensed. Over the mouth of the filled cup is sealed a flexible membrane which is sized to have a surface area which matches the surface area of the interior of the cup. At the point of sale, a plunger is brought to bear on the flexible membrane, forcing it into the interior of the cup and at the same time causing the product to be dispensed through the aperture. The emptied cup is then discarded. Since the plunger never contacts the product per se, the dispensing equipment remains clean irrespective of how many portions are served and cross-contamination between different flavoured servings is avoided. However, these cups may crack from time to time under the force applied during dispensing and furthermore, the cups are relatively complex and expensive to manufacture and fill.
Also know is a one-serving ice-cream dispenser comprising a rigid cylinder having an open end and a partially closed end. The partially closed end is shaped as a truncated cone, with the area about the would-be tip of the cone cut away to form a star-shaped dispenser opening. Also provided is a rigid plunger bead shaped to match the inner circumference of the cylinder and having a conical nose shaped to match the cone-shaped end of the cylinder. Product is filled into the open end of the cylinder, the body of which is sized to hold one serving. It is prevented from escaping through the opening by the provision of a removable tab over the outside of the opening. Once filled, the plunger head is placed into the cylinder with its nose facing inwardly. When it is desired to dispense the ice cream, the tab is removed and a plunger rod engages the plunger head, and forces it along the cylinder until all the product is extruded through the opening. Then, the cylinder and plunger head are discarded. This arrangement is hygienic and convenient for the end user, but is somewhat expensive.